Kuru was an ancient Indian kingdom.[1] The kingdom was emerged as a branch of Rigvedic Puru tribe and lasted until Nandas of Magadha dethroned them in 350s BCE.[2] Kuru kingdom is famous for Mahabharat[3] and Kurukshetra War.[4] Its capital was Hastinapura and Indraprastha.[5]
| Maharaj of Kuru Kingdom | |
|---|---|
State | |
_circa_350-315_BCE.jpg) A Karshapana (½ silver coin) of Kuru ruler | |
| Details | |
| Style | His Imperial Majesty |
| First monarch | Vidhuratha I (as the successor to the Puru king) |
| Last monarch | Kṣemaka |
| Formation | c. 1200 BCE |
| Abolition | 350 BCE |
| Residence | |
| Appointer | Hereditary |
Kuru Kingdom was split into three parts: Kuru proper (which itself also spilt into Vatsa kingdom) "Kurujangala" and "Uttarakuru". Kuru proper was in the middle region of Ganga-Yammuna Doab, Kurujangala was in western part and Uttarakuru was in eastern region.[6]
Origin of lineage
editKing Kuru II of Puru dynasty after whom the dynasty was named 'Kuruvansha' or 'Kaurava'. After his name, the district in Haryana was called as Kurukshetra.[7] By the glory, zenith and name of this king the dynasty hence renamed from Paurava Kingdom to Kuru Kingdom.[8] After these Kings several kings of this dynasty established several kingdoms. He had three sons, namely Vidhuratha I who became the ruler of Pratisthana, Vyushitaswa who died at a very young age, and Sudhanva, who became the ruler of Magadha. Henceforth, Vidhuratha became the first kuru king of Hastinapura.[9]
List of kings
edit- Vidhuratha I
- Jahnu
- Suratha
- Vidhuratha II
- Sarvabhauma II
- Jayasena
- Radhika
- Ayutayu
- Akrodhana II
- Devaththi II
- Riksha III
- Dilipa
- Anaswan II
- Parikshit II
- Janamejaya III
- Bheemasena
- Pratishravas
- Pratipa
- Shantanu
- Chitrāngada (son of Shantanu, who was killed prematurely. Bhishma, who was the eldest son of the Shantanu and Ganga; had functioned as the regent of the Kurus, under Chitrāngada, Vichitravirya, Pandu and Dhritarashtra II)
- Vichitravirya (younger brother of Chitrāngada, who died prematurely).
- Pandu (son of Vichitravirya and Ambalika. Vidura, who was his half brother, served as his, and his elder brother's Prime Minister)
- Dhritarashtra II (older half-brother of Pandu, and son of Ambika who didn't succeed Vichitravirya directly due to his blindness).
- The Kauravas, led by Duryodhana (sons of Dhritarashtra and Gandhari, who were slain in the Kurukshetra War).
- The Pandavas, led by Chakravarti Samrat Yudhishtira (who were the main protagonists of the Mahabharata).
- Parikshit III was the son of Abhimanyu; and grandson of the Pandava Arjuna
- Janamejaya IV
- Śatānīka
- Ashwamedhatta (Ashwamedhaja)
- Asīmakṛṣṇa
- Nemicakra
- Citraratha
- Vṛṣṭimān
- Suṣeṇa
- Sunītha
- Nṛcakṣu
- Sukhīnala
- Pariplava
- Sunaya
- Nṛpañjaya
- Timi
- Bṛhadratha
- Sudāsa
- Śatānīka
- Udayana
- Mahīnara
- Daṇḍapāṇi
- Nimi
- Kṣemaka
Kuru family tree
editThis shows the line of royal and family succession, not necessarily the parentage. See the notes below for detail.
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Key to Symbols
Notes
- a: Shantanu was a king of the Kuru dynasty or kingdom, and was some generations removed from any ancestor called Kuru. His marriage to Ganga preceded his marriage to Satyavati.
- b: Pandu and Dhritarashtra were fathered by Vyasa in the niyoga tradition after Vichitravirya's death. Dhritarashtra, Pandu and Vidura were the sons of Vyasa with Ambika, Ambalika and a maid servant respectively.
- c: Karna was born to Kunti through her invocation of Surya, before her marriage to Pandu.
- d: Yudhishthira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva were acknowledged sons of Pandu but were begotten by the invocation by Kunti and Madri of various deities. They all married Draupadi (not shown in tree).
- e: Duryodhana and his siblings were born at the same time, and they were of the same generation as their Pandava cousins.
- f : Although the succession after the Pandavas was through the descendants of Arjuna and Subhadra, it was Yudhishthira and Draupadi who occupied the throne of Hastinapura after the great battle.
The birth order of siblings is correctly shown in the family tree (from left to right), except for Vyasa and Bhishma whose birth order is not described, and Vichitravirya and Chitrangada who were born after them. The fact that Ambika and Ambalika are sisters is not shown in the family tree. The birth of Duryodhana took place after the birth of Karna, Yudhishthira and Bhima, but before the birth of the remaining Pandava brothers.
Some siblings of the characters shown here have been left out for clarity; this includes Vidura, half-brother to Dhritarashtra and Pandu.
Family of Pandavas
editPandavas means sons of King Pandu. Pandavas were five in number as: Yudhishtira, Bhima, Arjuna, Nakula and Sahadeva. The first three of five Pandavas were the sons of Kunti and Pandu while the younger two were born to Madri after Pandu's request.[10]
- Yaudheya was the son of Yudhishthira and Devika.
- Ghatotkacha was the son of Bhima and Hidimbi
- Abhimanyu was the son of Arjuna and Subhadra.
- Babruvahana was the son of Arjuna and Chitrāngadā.
- Iravan was the son of Arjuna and Ulupi.
- Niramitra was the son of Nakula and Karenumati.
- Suhotra was the son of Sahadeva and Queen Vijaya.
- Upapandavas were the 5 sons of Pandava and Draupadi (daughter of King Drupada of Panchala). Their names were Prativindhya (from Yudhishthira), Sutasoma (from Bheema), Shrutakarma (from Arjuna), Satanika (from Nakula) and Shrutasena (from Sahadeva).[11]
See also
editNotes
editReferences
edit- ^ Pletcher 2010, p. 63.
- ^ B. Kölver, ed. (1997). Recht, Staat und Verwaltung im klassischen Indien [Law, State and Administration in Classical India] (in German). München: R. Oldenbourg. pp. 27–52.
- ^ "Mahabharata". Collins English Dictionary (13th ed.). HarperCollins. 2018. ISBN 978-0-008-28437-4.
- ^ Narayan, R. K. (2001-03-01). The Mahabharata. Penguin Books Limited. ISBN 978-0-14-119081-5.
- ^ "Uttar Pradesh - History". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2019-12-16.
- ^ Raychaudhuri 1953, p. 21-23.
- ^ "Kurukshetra (India)". Encyclopædia Britannica. Archived from the original on 10 August 2014. Retrieved 9 August 2014.
- ^ The Chronology of India: From Manu to Mahabharata ISBN 978-8194321309
- ^ Dalal, Roshen (2014-04-18). Hinduism: An Alphabetical Guide. Penguin UK. ISBN 978-81-8475-277-9.
- ^ Bonnefoy, Yves. Asian Mythologies. translated under the direction of Wendy Doniger. Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press. 1993. pp. 180–183. ISBN 0-226-06456-5
- ^ van Buitenen, J.A.B., ed. (1981). The Mahābhārata. Translated by van Buitenen (Phoenix ed.). Chicago: University of Chicago Press. ISBN 9780226846644.